FAQs - Applying for Certification

Is it OK if I apply for my certification before I graduate? Yes. If you expect to graduate at the end of this semester then it is OK to apply for certification. We not however recommend that you apply for certification an earlier than your final semester.

Is it OK if I apply for my certification before passing my certification exams? Yes. You will not be certified until all certification requirements are complete, including exams – but you can apply for certification before passing those exams.

I applied using the wrong pathway, how do I get that fixed? Email the NY State Education Department at tcert@mail.nysed.gov to request a pathway change.

When applying for my certificate it asks for a program code. Where do I get one? Select the Brockport degree you completed from Applying for Certification, and then select the education program you completed.

Please note that Brockport codes should only be used when applying for a certificate based on completing a Brockport education program.

For example, undergraduate Childhood Inclusive students are completing an education program leading to certification in Childhood (grades 1-6) and Students with Disabilities (grades 1-6). Those students can therefore use the Brockport codes for those two certificates. A Childhood Inclusive student might have also been an English major at Brockport. That student did not however complete an English education program at Brockport and should therefore not use the English education program code if attempting to add an additional certificate in English. In this example, the student would simply apply for that English certificate using no code.

How much does it cost to apply for my certificate(s)? The application for each certificate is $50 when applying as the result of completing an approved Brockport education program.

I think I want to wait a while before applying for my certificate(s). Is that OK? Maybe. While some program completers wait a bit before applying for their certificate(s), based on a number of personal reasons, great caution should be taken should you decide to do so. Regular changes to NY State certification requirements can have a significant impact on a candidate’s certification eligibility should the candidate not be certified prior to the implementation of a change.

In some instances candidates have been required to complete new exams, new coursework, and even entire programs in order to earn the certificate(s) for which they were once eligible but failed to earn as a result of delaying their certification application.

Extreme caution should therefore be exercised when making the decision to delay applying for a certificate.

The Brockport Certification Office provides updated information on pending certification changes. We cannot however guarantee that the changes identified on this page are inclusive of all possible changes proposed by NY State at any given time.